Time to leave the dangerous place you were living in. Well to be fair, I am on this journey with you. Maybe we should start a support group and keep each other in check. Anybody? Ok, if you are with me leave a comment below, we could work on something.
When I looked at this topic I pictured myself sitting in a cage, but everything I needed was in there. I was happy in my cage until I started seeing things outside my cage that I thought would be fun to try. I wanted to but for every time I reached for the key a glimpse at something I had in my cage told me I was being greedy or that that particular thing was enough and I would settle. The moment I settled I judged everybody that was outside my cage. Somewhere later in my imaginary story I threw away the key, and that ladies and gentlemen is what we are trying to avoid. Here is how you can use that key and live your life to the fullest.
MOVE TOWARDS YOUR FEARS
The Comfort Series
Yes, you read that right. Move towards them and not away from them. This is the only way to conquer them, this is probably the hardest thing that you will ever have to do. Think about it like this though, it is either it works or it doesn’t and if it doesn’t you find out why and try again. You gain knowledge you did not have before and second time around you can/will/should implement it better. I have been blogging for 5 years and in those 5 years I gave up twice, both those times it was because I needed to get out of my comfort zone and I was scared. You would not be reading this if I had not faced my fears. So go ahead, face the music, dance off beat until you find your rhythm.
GIVE UP CONTROL
The Comfort Series
You want to be in control of your life therefore you try so hard to make sure that everything you do has a predictable or rather a set outcome. More of 1+1=2. No surprises at all. I get it, it is always better if you know the results. It gives you COMFORT. So loosen up, let go of the control and allow yourself to live a little. A couple of falls will live some bruises but so what? Let go!
KEEP A LIST OF YOUR GOALS
The Comfort Series
This is very important. A list of your goals keeps you focused and helps you to evaluate your progress. We are in the new year and people have done their new years resolutions, end of the year we looked at what we achieved and what we didn’t, well I hope we did. We recorded where it is that we fell off the wagon and how to avoid falling off again. One can do this because their goals are written down and the moment you start ticking those off your list you will find that comfort will never be a place for you ever again.
TAKE NOTHING FOR GRANTED
The Comfort Series
Starting with yourself. That is the easiest pit we fall into, we take ourselves for granted and I do not know if it is a case of choosing to self-destruct or not. A part of it falls into the fact that we were raised not to think we were as great as we really are. The problem with that is we start to undervalue ourselves and it shows. If you have ever told yourself that you will not apply for a job or approach a client because you are not good enough, hello, you are in this pool. You matter, you count and you can.
START CONVERSATIONS WITH STRANGERS
The Comfort Series
The person writing this sucks at this very thing of starting conversations with strangers. But then she is alive and has tried it so, there is the proof that you will not die either. You know where ideas come from, strangers. You know where great stories start off, with strangers. It also really helps as a confidence booster + taking a no becomes ok as time goes because not everyone will engage you.
TRY TO DO SOMETHING NEW
The Comfort Series
Go skating or bungee jumping. Try out your comedy skills in front of a group of friends. Just try something and I promise it will count. Such experiences open your eyes to the world. They allow you to realize that your fear or anxiety isn’t bigger than you, they aren’t enough to keep you from doing more. They aren’t enough to keep you from taking a step further and taking a risk.
Not a single one of us is not destined for greatness, the only difference is in what we do. We have the power of choice, so what are you choosing to do differently today? Drop it in the comments section, your response might trigger someone to take a step out of the comfort zone.
Why step out of the comfort zone? Find out next week on YouBeYou, CIAO!
